State of the Streets: New York City

This year, we accomplished more than ever in New York City. Here’s a snapshot of our success:

Garnering legislative support. This spring, we reached out to 20 council members and their staff including Council Member Annabel Palma, Brad Lander, Charles Baroon, Daniel Garrodnick, Deborah Rose, Diana Reyna, Gale Brewer, Jimmy Van Brehmer, Julissa Ferreras, Jumaane Williams, Karen Koslowitz, Larry Seabrooke, Letitia James, Margaret Chin, Maria del Castro, Peter Vallone, Rosie Mendez, Ruben Wills, Steven Levin and Ydanis Rodriguez. Fifteen of the council members and/or their staff accepted meetings with us. The goal of each meeting was to establish broad support for Hollaback!’s work, including the apps and local community workshops on bystander intervention. As a result of our efforts, we received $32,500 in the FY 12-13 budget from Council Members Quinn, Ferreras, and Lander.

Queens’ first Safety audit. We held the first-ever community safety audit in Queens, in partnership with Council Member Ferreras. The event was attended by representatives from NYC agencies including the NYPD, NYC Department of Transportation, and the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit. Collaborating community organizations included Elmcor Senior Services, Dominican American Society (DAS), Ecuadorian Civic Committee, Make the Road New York, and Community Board 3 members. Together, we surveyed blocks in neighborhoods where residents expressed safety concerns and we helped develop concrete plans to address those concerns.

Research Released in Partnership with Cornell University. In October of 2010, Cornell University partnered with Hollaback! to undertake research on street harassment. In May 2012, we released two studies, When Street Harassment Comes Indoors: A sample of New York City service agencies and unions response to street harassment and The Experience of Being Targets of Street Harassment in NYC: Preliminary Findings from a Qualitative Study of a Sample of 223 voices who Hollaback!. We held a legislative briefing in June to discuss the release of the data. The briefing was a huge success and was attended by staffers from 18 council members’ offices, and then we held a public launch event at Cornell University in September. More than 50 representatives from organizations and unions across the city attended the meeting. The diverse group was joined by Speaker Quinn and Council Member Ferreras who both spoke about the importance of addressing street harassment.